This coach was built for British Railways (Western Region) in 1950 by Metropolitan-Cammel Carriage and Wagon.Co. Ltd to a Hawksworth design.
It was converted for work on permanent way trains by the gutting of the guards compartment and luggage area to form a galley and dining room.  One of the compartments became a boiler room and the rest sleeping accommodation.
It was rescued from Cardiff by a private buyer who took it to the West Somerset Railway with the intention of restoring it to a fictitious composite layout giving 64 third class seats.  Unfortunately he was unable to complete the task and offered 2180 for sale.  Being of GWR design and reasonably sound it was purchased by a London Group member for the Trust.  Now 276 is in traffic (though not completely finished) this is the next London Group project, though the speed of restoration will depend on funding.  There has been an interlude where GWR Covered Goods 95979 was rebuilt to be a stores vehicle for this project.
The current proposal is to rebuild it as a GWR Buffet, since we already have enough brake coaches and no GWR refreshment coach.
When complete 2180 will form part of the Great Western train with 6515, two "Excursion Coaches" 1285 & 1295, Hawksworth First/Third Brake 7377, Compartment coaches 536 and 1645, Full Brake 276 and Ocean Saloons 9111 "King George" and 9116 "Duchess of York".

August 2007
Work on the restoration of 2180 has finally started!
Whilst the coach is general in pretty good condition we do have to totally reskin it.  Unlike 276 2180 doesn't appear to have been reskined in the past or if it has then the original screw holes were used.  We too will be reusing the old holes except along the bottom where the screws have failed totally.  The sheets will have the screws in the correct place because we're going to replace the bottom wooden infill.  There is only one reason for this; ROT!
Water has run down inside the panelling and completely rotted away the steel fixings for the wooden verticals.  Unlike 276 all the bolts have punched out of the wood because they haven't rotted however they are no longer holding the body to the chassis.
We are going to have to replace these items totally which means blowing off the old plates and riveting on new ones.  This is a new skill for coach work having previously been limited to locomotives and will mean assisting the main workshop staff in the task.  Once done they should last for at least another 60 years.
 

Work starts on stripping away rotten panels to reveal other problems	©GRB 2007
The extent of the corrosion is disturbing but very local.  The wood is sound.	©GRB 2007
Detail of corrosion; steel on wood should be welded to plate on chassis!	©GRB 2007
What the bracket should look like; only need to make 50 new ones.	©GRB 2007